As much as Red Sox fans would love to keep their beloved LF in Boston for the next several years, they will have to watch the competition get stiff in the free agent market.

Rumors are swirling around that the San Francisco Giants would like to sign Jason Bay during this offseason. It’s not crazy at all. Bay is coming off of a tremendous year where he hit 36 home runs and drove in 116 RBI (both career-highs) while hitting .267. The 2009 season was the last year on Bay’s contract.

The Giants made a surprise run at the N.L. Wild Card in 2009 thanks in large part to their stellar pitching, which was the second best in the majors with a team ERA of 3.55. However, they just couldn’t get things going on offense as they only hit .257 as a team and were dead-last in the majors with a .699 OPS.

The Giants need some real pop to their bats, and Jason Bay is one of the best free agents up for grabs. Plus, Bay makes his residence in Seattle, so being closer to home on the west coast is another incentive to make a move away from Boston.

I am sure the Red Sox will make their attempts at keeping Bay here in Boston, but thanks to his monster season, the asking price may become too great.